garlic busts high blood pressure — as well as meds

Why I love garlic, reason number zillion.

Herbalists generally moan when asked “what’s your favorite herbal medicine?” But I think most of us secretly enjoy the game of choosing the top three, five or 10 plant medicines we’d want with us on a desert island.

Regardless of how tightly I’m supposed to narrow the list, garlic always ends up in a top spot. (Unless I’m supposed to pick just one. Then I just refuse to play.)

Here’s the latest reason to include garlic among my must-have medicinals: It reduces hypertension (high blood pressure) as much as the prescription drug Atenolol, even in culinary doses. 

Researchers in Saudi Arabia took 210 people with hypertension and divided them into seven groups. Each group got either Atenolol, placebo, or 300-1500mg of garlic every day for 24 weeks. At the end of the study, the results for the atenolol group were functionally the same as those getting the higher doses of garlic.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg for this ancient medicine, of course. Garlic helps fight infections, reduces cancer risks, balances cholesterol and many other things — all while giving delicious spice to a healthy life.

If you have high blood pressure, please talk to your doctor about the best options for your health. Click here to book your appointment.